This invention relates to transport devices and in particular to a high speed transport for handling relatively small and flexible articles. While the invention is described with particular emphasis on its use in conjunction with mail tag destinators, those skilled in the art will recognize the wide applicability of the invention to other uses and systems.
There recently has been an increase in the use by postal authorities of automation techniques for providing systematic handling of mail bags. Commonly, outgoing mail is placed in a conventional canvas mailbag and the bag is sealed. A clip having space for inserting a mail tag is attached to each bag and a mail tag is inserted in the clip. The mail tag commonly lists the destination, zip code of that destination, and the point of origin for the mailbag contents. In larger mail processing centers, each individual mailbag is taken by a worker who either manually or mechanically reads the zip code from the mailbag, manually inserts or automatically encodes the zip code into computer language at a data input terminal, and places the mailbag on a conveyor. The zip code information is transmitted by the automatic or manual data terminal to a control station, for example, a computer which controls the conveyor. The control station can be programmed so that it will remove the mailbag from the conveyor at a proper destination output position when conveyor-bay travel reaches that proper position.
The use of automated processing equipment greatly reduces the handling time required to process large volumes of mail. However, the widespread use of automated equipment has generated a number of peripheral problems heretofore unresolved in the art. One of these peripheral problems involves the manufacture of reliably readable mail tags. Postal application mail tags are intended to be disposable and low in cost. By their very nature, they are a high volume product which should lend themselves to high speed manufacturing techniques. Automated manufacturing techniques have been hampered, however, because devices capable of high speed handling of mail tags after their printing and cutting have not been available commercially. While some commercially available equipment can be adapted to mail tag manufacturing, in general, available equipment has been unreliable when high speed operation of the equipment is attempted. Consequently, optimum production of the tags has not been realized. The unreliability of prior art equipment in large measure is caused by the relatively small size and flexibility of the mail tags. That is, because the tags are relatively thin and flexible, they tend to jam easily and prior art machines encounter recurring jamming when high speed operation is attempted.
The invention disclosed hereinafter provides a high speed transport capable of reliably working in conjunction with high output apparatus. The device finds particular application as an interface between a slitter cutter for manufacturing mail tags and a stacking and bundling machine in that it receives labels from the slitter cutter, and advances them to a stacking and bundling station at a speed comparable with either the printing or cutting operation.
One of the objects of this invention is to provide a high speed article transport device.
Another object of this invention is to provide an article transport device which maintains positive control of each article under transport.
Yet another object of this invention is to provide a low cost transport device capable of operating for long, uninterrupted production run time periods.
Still another object of this invention is to provide means for transporting and spacing individual articles of a predetermined group which operates at the highest rate of any apparatus associated with the article manufacture.
Other objects will be apparent to those skilled in the art in light of the following description and accompanying drawings.